Ukraine's Energoatom and Japan's Toshiba Energy Systems & Solutions Corporation have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on cooperation in the modernisation of the turbine island equipment of Ukrainian nuclear power plants. Energoatom operates all of Ukraine's four nuclear power plants - Zaporozhe, Rovno, South Ukraine and Khmelnitsky - which comprise 15 nuclear reactors, including 13 VVER-1000s and two VVER-440s with a total capacity of 13,835 MWe.

The bilateral MoU covers increasing power output, efficiency and safety through the upgrading of turbine island equipment, Energoatom said today. It also aims to expand cooperation in the long-term service of installed equipment at nuclear power plants and to introduce the latest "technical and financial solutions", it said.

The document was signed by Yury Nedashkovsky, Energoatom president, and Goro Yanase, vice president of the Japanese firm. The signing ceremony was attended by representatives of Japan's embassy in Ukraine and the Ministry of Energy and the Coal Industry of Ukraine.

"We are convinced that our joint work will not only help us to increase the capacity of Ukraine's nuclear power plants, but will provide additional impetus to the development of domestic technologies for [them]," Nedashkovsky said.

The MoU is to be implemented by a steering committee, which will also develop "appropriate commercial agreements" on, for example, equipment supply, Energoatom said.

The MoU states that Ukraine and Japan are members of the International Atomic Energy Agency and parties to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons. The two sides "believe their cooperation in the peaceful uses of nuclear energy will contribute to the stable socio-economic development of Ukraine and Japan", the statement added.